Same Old Truths (The Reluctant Avenger)

by Delora Dennis

  She bristled inside at Cory’s sarcastic remarks, especially since Cory had barely spoken two words to her over the last two weeks. Summer school, fun with friends, and the radioactive perimeter around Cory’s bedroom had kept mother and daughter at a distance. Nevertheless, Cory had had her mother all to herself and she wasn’t happy about the upcoming change in her special circumstance.

  Kay straightened up and turned to say something but realized Cory had already retreated to her bedroom. She sighed.

  At least she didn’t slam the door.

  The display on Mariah’s bedside Tinker Bell clock read 5:23. Kay had just enough time to freshen up and change her clothes before she had to jump in the car for a punctual 6:00 pick up at Dave’s.

  Sandy’s probably champing at the bit to be rid of Mariah for the weekend.

  Kay was tempted to drag her feet and arrive for Mariah at a time of her own choosing but she just couldn’t bring herself to play those kinds of games. She often wished she was a person of more dubious character, but her mom and dad had been too diligent with her upbringing. Not to mention it would have been cruel to leave Mariah there one second longer than necessary.

  Kay’s pulled in front of Dave’s house at precisely 5:57. This was her first visit to her ex-husband’s home since his return to town the previous fall. She looked around the exterior premises, surprised to see it wasn’t as elaborate as she’d imagined; it was a nondescript, brick tract home. However, the freshly-mowed lawn and well-tended flower beds soaking up gentle drops from a lazy sprinkler created a picture of sweet domesticity that made Kay’s stomach clench.

  Working on the yard had always been one of Kay’s favorite things to do with Dave when they were married. He had even taught her how to start up and maintain the power mower. She pictured her own, previously-neglected, front yard and felt another twinge. It was looking pretty good these days. But the guy from Green Shovel Lawn Care worked alone.

  Kay got out of the car and as soon as she spotted Mariah jumping up and down in the front window, her discomfort evaporated.

  Mariah came flying out the door before Kay had a chance to make it up the walkway to properly call for her. Apparently, this was not a problem, as the front door was quickly closed (slammed?) behind her. Mariah sprinted into her mother’s waiting arms and hung on for dear life.

  “Where’s your bag?” Kay asked.

  The door opened. The bag magically appeared on the doorstep. The door closed.

  Kay just shook her head. She thought it was a shame adults had to act like this in front of impressionable children. Mariah didn’t notice. She was still clinging to her mother.

  Kay finally got Mariah to let go long enough to get her in the car. It was a joyous ride home with Mariah full of exuberant tales of adventures with new friends at day camp. But nothing compared to the level of happiness Mariah expressed once they were back at home. Even Cory seemed to be glad to see her little sister. Of course, Cory’s warm spirits could have been due to the fact she was leaving for a sleepover at Violet’s.

  “I’m hungry, Mommy. Do we have anything to eat?”

  The request, which typically grated on Kay’s nerves, was now music to her ears.

  “How does spaghetti sound? It’s already made. I just have to warm it up.” Kay said.

  “Did you make garlic bread too?” Mariah asked.

  “Would I give you spaghetti without garlic bread?” Kay said with a laugh.

  Kay sent Mariah upstairs to deposit her bag and get reacquainted with her room. She pre-heated the oven and then opened a bottle of chianti. She was reaching into the drawer for the table place mats when she heard Mariah say, “Wow…flowers.” Suddenly Kay thought about Cory’s bed and breakfast comment. She wanted Mariah to feel at home and not like a guest, so she called up to her and asked her to come down and set the table. The little girl cheerfully complied

  They were just getting ready to sit at the table when Violet appeared at the door to collect Cory. Kay could tell Mariah was delighted about Cory’s departure and her turn at having her mother all to herself.

  “Mmmmmm. This is really good,” Mariah said.

  Kay enjoyed watching Mariah vacuum up the long noodles which left cute spaghetti sauce tracks on her chin. Kay was enjoying the simple meal as well, made even better by her glass of full-bodied wine. Kay relaxed back into her chair and finally asked the question she’d been holding back since they’d pulled away from Dave’s house.

  “So how are things going between you and Sandy?” Kay said, hoping the question wouldn’t provoke a negative turn in the light-hearted mood at the table.

  “Sandy’s been in a really good mood, Mommy. She hasn’t gotten mad at me, not even one time.”

  Yeah. I imagine Maui has that effect on people.

  According to Mariah it seemed Sandy’s magnanimous spirits even extended to the next door neighbor, Mr. Knash, whom she and Dave, reportedly, couldn’t abide. Mariah told Kay that Dave and Sandy called him “Mr. Trash” and complained about him being “phony-nice” just so he could poke his nose into our business.” Dave and Sandy’s overt cold-shoulder behavior was enough to give the sensitive Mariah a stomach ache.

  “Mr. Knash says hello in the drive way and Sandy and Dad answer kinda snotty and get in the car real quick.”

  But apparently, there had been a recent change of heart. Mariah told Kay that just the day before, Sandy had “been real friendly” to Mr. Knash when he talked to them over the fence separating their two backyards. “And I could tell she wasn’t pretending, Mommy.”

  “Why do you say that, Honey?” Kay said.

  Kay’s mouth dropped to the floor when Mariah launched into an explanation complete with elaborate scene reenactment.

  “Little Dave and I were playing in his pool and Sandy was getting a tan. She was on a towel reading her book like this.” Mariah got up from the table and walked over to the living room where she laid on her stomach on the carpet. She propped herself up on her elbows, bent her legs at the knees and alternated them in slow, languid kicks. Her semi-cupped hands supported an invisible book.

  “Mr. Knash walked over to the fence and said, “Well, hello, Neighbor.” I think Sandy was real happy to see him, cuz she looked up and gave him a great big smile.” The little girl stood up and as she walked back to the table a cloud passed over her face. She sat down and was ready to take another mouthful of spaghetti when she stopped. “She never smiles at Dad like that. I think he’d be mad if he knew Mr. Knash was looking at Sandy in her bikini,” Mariah said.

  What?No flouncy denim one-piece?

  Kay could tell by the tone in Mariah’s voice she was beginning to become aware of the lurid side of adult behavior. Kay hated to see her little girl lose her innocence. She struggled to come up with something that would soften the little girl’s concern.

  “Well, it’s probably good they’re getting along. There’s nothing worse than feuding with your neighbors.”

  As for Mr. Knash ogling Sandy in her bikini…well Kay wasn’t prepared to adequately address that issue. So, she plastered over the awkwardness by introducing a new subject.

  “Hey guess what?” Kay said. “I’m going to be helping out at the Boys and Girls’ Club flea market tomorrow morning. I thought you might like to come along and be my assistant.”

  “Oh, did Dad call you about it?” Mariah asked.

  “What? No! Why would your father call me about it?” Kay said.

  “He’s gonna be there too,” Mariah said.

  Absolutely, flippin’ fantastic.

  “I don’t get it. Since when did your dad become interested in the Boys and Girls Club?”

  Dave had always been quite vocal about his aversion to participating in any kind of organization - youth, civic, religious or otherwise. If memory served her, it all stemmed from some mysterious, traumatic experience with the Cub Scouts.

  Probably made fun of his macaroni sculptures.

  “Since he put me in their summer day cam
p,” Mariah said. “I told you, Mom. I go there everyday.”

  Did I miss her saying it was Boys and Girls Club?

  “I heard him tell Sandy somebody squeezed him and he got stuck helping out,” Mariah said.

  Kay giggled. “Do you mean, somebody put the squeeze on him?

  “Yeah. Somebody put the squeeze on him.” Mariah said. She took another big bite of her dinner.

  This was news Kay hadn’t expected. Since that day his wife had exposed his dirty dealings, Kay had managed to avoid a month of Dave’s imploring emails and frantic phone messages. As far as she was concerned there was no explanation, no apology, NOTHING that could induce her to reestablish communication with him. Even though his attempts to contact her had eventually stopped, she knew she was bound to be in for a new round of harassment once he found out she was taking him back to court.

  The noodles in her mouth turned to rubber. She felt a panic coming on and was overcome by an intense impulse to call Virginia and say she’d contracted a horrible, disfiguring disease. The thought was forced out of her mind by a flashback of her avowed declaration of independence to her attorney.

  An electrifying current of empowerment surged through Kay which, strangely enough, began to calm her down. The more she thought about it, the more she realized an encounter with Dave at the flea market would be the perfect opportunity to trot out her new “divorced” persona. And if, by chance, she faltered, she knew Mariah’s presence would be the ideal deterrent to any unpleasant confrontation.

  “So, whaddaya say? Wanna go?” Kay said.

  “Do I get paid?” Mariah said.

  Kay laughed. “We’re volunteers, Honey. But I’ll tell you what. If you do a good job, I’ll take you to the Cream Queen, afterward, for a banana split.”

  The buzzing vibration of an incoming text on the phone in Kay’s pants pocket caused her to drop her fork and let out a startled yelp. Her comical spasm caused spaghetti to blow out from Mariah’s lips.

  Did u 4get me already?

  It was Tina Chalmers. Kay cringed when she read the text; she had forgotten.

  Yes But not on purpose

  Kay was completely at ease being truthful with Tina.

  Oh. So u did it on accident?

  Kay laughed at Tina’s playful tease. After all these years, Tina had remembered one of Kay’s most annoying pet peeves - the increasingly-common, improper use of “accidentally.”

  LOL Let me make it up to u Lunch next week on me

  God, I hate texting. Where’s the punctuation on this stupid thing? Kay struggled to tap out even the simplest message.

  I’ll call you next week to confirm

  Sounds good

  “I thought you said it’s rude to text at the table,” Mariah said

  Kay quickly shoved her phone back in her pocket.

  “It is rude. I apologize,” Kay said.

  “So who was it?” Mariah asked, still shoveling food into her mouth with gusto.

  “Excuse me? Now who’s being rude?” Kay said.

  “Oh sorry,” Mariah said, putting down her fork, chewing then swallowing. She took a sip of water and checked to make sure her mouth was empty. “So who was it?” she asked again.

  Kay burst out laughing.

  “I swear, Mariah. Sometimes you’re just too cute for your own good. I meant it was rude to ask who I was talking too.”

  The little girl’s cheeks turned as red as the spaghetti sauce on her chin.

  Kay felt bad about embarrassing Mariah. “I’m sorry, Honey. I didn’t mean to laugh at you. Anyway, it’s not anyone you know. Just an old friend of mine.” Kay said. Kay knew it had been too many years for Mariah to remember Tina.

  A reassuring pat on the hand from her mom was all Mariah needed to return to her contented mood and the rest of her spaghetti.

  “Hey mom? Can I stay up tonight and watch Friday Night Frights? They’re playing Dead Zombies Society. Alisha Resnick says if I watch it I can be in her club.”

  Kay could tell Mariah was trying to act older and bolder in the face of an intimidating initiation from this Alisha Resnick. Kay was tempted to say yes, knowing the first few eerie bars of the opening music would probably send Mariah running for the safety of her mother’s bed. She decided to let Mariah completely off the hook by reminding her of their upcoming community service assignment.

  “We’re going to have to be up by 6:30. If you stay up late, I know it’ll be a fight to get you out of bed. Let’s save the zombie movie for some other night. Ok?”

  The look of relief on Mariah’s face confirmed Kay’s suspicion. She was still too young for frights on Friday - or any other night. And just in case Kay was right about Alisha Resnick too, she was happy to provide Mariah with a valid excuse.

  After clearing the dishes, Kay poured herself another glass of wine and she and Mariah settled on the sofa for some non-flesh-eating TV entertainment. Thirty minutes later Mariah was sound asleep with her head in her mother’s lap. Kay scooped Mariah up and smiled sweetly, but sadly, at the sight of her rapidly-maturing daughter. She knew it wouldn’t be long before carrying Mariah upstairs to bed would no longer be possible.

  19

  What’s the Scoop

  “Watch your fingers, Mariah!” Kay shouted, as the little girl attempted to extend the legs on the plastic folding table. “You almost got pinched.” Kay carefully locked the legs in place before she and Mariah righted the light-weight table. With their task finished, Mariah asked to be excused, saying she’d be right back.

  Kay was beginning to question the wisdom of volunteering for the early shift at the flea market. When she’d first agreed to Virginia’s request, she had pictured herself in the coolness of the June morning, standing behind a table of beautifully-arranged, reasonably priced treasures, sipping coffee, and smiling sweetly as she offered assistance to eager buyers.

  Her intention had been to avoid the heat of the blazing afternoon sun and boredom of the, sure to be, slower stream of customers. It never occurred to her she’d be helping with the labor-intensive set up. Contrary to Virginia’s complaint of a dearth of volunteers, there were plenty of enthusiastic helpers happy to be pitching in for a good cause, including several members of Executive Connections.

  Kay was amazed to see everything come nearly all-together by the 8:00 am starting time. For the first half-hour a tiny trickle of people slowly made their way around the community garden grounds which had been transformed into a large area of commerce. They had managed to sell out almost every booth and table space. Nevertheless, Virginia paced back and forth, worried her advertising campaign might have fallen short. It didn’t take long before hoards of shoppers swarmed tables and booths. The competition was fierce to be first to grab some perceived prize which would likely show up at a yard or garage sale the following weekend.

  Kay picked up the box containing the only two items she felt worthy of donation and placed it on the chair next to her. One was a kitchen clock with the face of a large orange slice sitting in an orange-painted wooden frame, and an old-fashioned ice cream churn. Both items had been purchased by Dave at the beginning of their marriage and were still in perfect working order. The personal treasures held wonderful memories for Kay. As much as it pained her, she told herself letting these things go would be an important symbolic gesture. So she wouldn’t be tempted to keep them, Kay made sure to price them to sell.

  With loving care she lifted each one out of the box and gently placed it on the table.

  “Is that what I think it is? I haven’t seen one of those things in years.”

  From out of nowhere, Delbert Schumacher appeared at Kay’s side, dressed in the crazy houseboat outfit of her imagination. If she hadn’t been so shocked at his sudden appearance, she would’ve laughed at the accuracy of her imagery.

  He picked up the ice cream churn, turning it this way and that, and admiring it with just a little-too-much enthusiasm.

  He took one look at the price sticker and blurted, “
Two dollars? You can’t possibly be serious about this price.”

  He put the churn back down hard on the table and looked at Kay with that same menacing face she’d seen that night in Virginia’s kitchen. “What’s wrong with it?”

  Kay snatched up the churn to inspect it for damage and move it away from Delbert. “Nothing.That is,‘til you slammed it on the table.” Kay said. She wanted to kick him in his black socks-covered shins.

  Kay was repositioning it back on the table when she heard a familiar voice say, “That ice cream churn sure does bring back a lot of memories.”

  Kay looked up to see Ed, standing on the other side of the table, wearing the smile he’d been withholding from her for such a long time. “We had one of those when I was growing up. I used to think my arm would fall off from cranking that handle.”

  Kay smiled back, too flustered to respond. Ed took pity on her and turned his attention to Delbert, who was staring daggers at him. Ed was unfazed. “Are you gonna buy it? If not, I’d like to have it,” Ed said.

  Delbert harrumphed. “Well, you know what they say. Caveat Emptor. Anyway, my doctor has restricted me from eating ice cream.”

  Ed shook his head. “What? No ice cream?” he said. “That’s brutal.”

  It was obvious Ed was busting Delbert’s chops, but because of his charming delivery, Delbert ate up the faux sincerity. Kay could tell by the encouraged look on his face, Delbert was getting ready to launch into his lactose-intolerant spiel, so she spoke first. “The churn works perfectly, Ed. I just don’t have much occasion to use it anymore and I hate to see it going to waste sitting in the cabinet.”

  Delbert looked at Ed, then at Kay. In a tone that was borderline accusatory Delbert said, “Well. It’s obvious you two know each other. Aren’t you going to introduce us, Kay?”

  The thought had already shot through Kay’s manners-conscious mind, but she was embarrassed for Ed to know about Delbert and the Executive Connections connection.

  “Where are my manners?” Kay feigned. “Delbert Schumacher, meet Ed Salinger. Mr. Salinger is my boss.”